To say the Tangipahoa River is a stone's throw from Joe Lavigne's house is only a slight exaggeration, so it's naturally the river with which he's most familiar. But it's not the only one on the northshore to produce loads of Kentucky bass.

The one that fishes most like the Tangipahoa is the Bogue Chitto, Lavigne said.

"It's a really good river," he said.

Lavigne also likes the Amite.

"You'll catch a little bit better quality of fish on the Amite River," he said. "But the problem with the Amite is finding a place to pick up."

The Tickfaw is productive, but it also has a drawback, according to Lavigne.

Spotted bass, known as Kentucky bass, are more slender and vibrantly colored than their largemouth cousins. They also have red eyes. Todd Masson, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune

"It has a lot of get-outs," he said. "You have to get out of the boat and pull it over logs. It's work, but it's got some real good fish."

One river that Lavigne never fishes is the Tchefuncte.

"Let me put it to you this way: I had a guy tell me one time, 'If you could guarantee me 100 bass, I wouldn't make that float,'" Lavigne said. "That's how hard it is. You'll stay out of the boat more than you'll be in it."